New Delhi: In a significant ruling, the
Supreme Court has held that a divorced Muslim woman who has
not remarried is entitled to maintenance from her ex-husband
even after the "iddat" (three months) period
A bench of justices B Sudershan Reddy and Deepak Verma
rejected husband Imran Khan`s contention who cited the Muslim
Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986 and claimed
that his divorced wife Shabana Bano was not entitled to any
maintenance allowance after the `iddat` period as held in the
sensational Shah Bano case.
The apex court held that under Section 125 CrPC and 7
of the Family Courts Act, 1984 even a Muslim woman can claim
maintenance from her husband as long as she is not remarried.
The ruling assumes significance as the bench quashed
the ruling of a trial court and the Madhya Pradesh High Court
which had taken the view that a Muslim woman is not entitled
to maintenance after the `iddat` period.
"The appellant`s petition under Section 125 of
the CrPC would be maintainable before the Family Court as long
as appellant does not remarry. The amount of maintenance to be
awarded under Section 125 of the CrPC cannot be restricted for
the iddat period only," the bench observed.
"It crystal clear that even a divorced Muslim woman
would be entitled to claim maintenance from her divorced
husband, as long as she does not remarry. This being a
beneficial piece of legislation, the benefit thereof must
accrue to the divorced Muslim women," the apex court said
citing the judgements in the Danial Latifia and Iqbal Bano
cases.
PTI
